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It's a Long List
}} Vaarsuvius arrives to survey the wreckage of their cabin. Cast * Vaarsuvius ◀ ▶ * Mr. Scruffy ◀ ▶ * Blackwing ◀ ▶ * Bloodfeast the Extreme-inator (as lizard) ◀ ▶ * Crew of the Mechane ** Felix ◀ ▶ ** Kwesi ◀ ▶ * Little Whiskers ◀ ▶ * Mischief of Hel ◀ Transcript Felix and Kwesi enter the room, looking with shock at the results of the explosion: all the rats are dead, and Blackwing and Mr. Scruffy are lying on the ground dazed. Blackwing: I'm a wizard, Harry! Vaarsuvius (off-panel): Stand aside! Blackwing: Oh, cool, you're here. I'm OK. Vaarsuvius: I became suspicious when your emotions transitioned to resigned acceptance and wistful regret. Felix: Where did all these rats come from? Blackwing: The vampire summoned them, right before he stole our giant swirly-thing and left. Vaarsuvius: Master Thundershield did this? Blackwing: No, some off-brand version. Mr. Scruffy is checking on Bloodfeast. Vaarsuvius (off-panel): I apologize for not coming immediately upon the first sign of distress. Mr. Scruffy: Meoww? Bloodfeast the Extreme-inator: Hurrrrr. Blackwing: Nah, it's my fault for crying wolf so often. I'm very bauble-insecure. Vaarsuvius: I will accept, in compromise, that we both have flaws upon which we must continue to improve. Blackwing: Deal. Blackwing: Oh! But you have to help Little Whiskers! Vaarsuvius: Who? Blackwing: The tiger! The vampire drained a lot of his blood before the big boom! Vaarsuvius: I have no means to aid this beast, but I can bring him to his mistress. Blackwing: OK, yes! Let's do that. Vaarsuvius: Bugsby's Cat-Retrieving Hand! Blackwing: I don't know what's weirder—that you keep preparing that spell, or that you keep needing it. Vaarsuvius: I must applaud your creativity, using my scroll offensively in such an unorthodox manner. Blackwing: And see, a few years ago you probably would've been mad that I wasted it. Vaarsuvius: I fear you are correct, though such a reaction would have been deplorable on my part. Vaarsuvius: You safety and well-being are of far greater concern than the preservation of a mere magic item. Blackwing: Thanks, V. I really appreciate that. Vaarsuvius: And even putting aside the emotional or moral impact, a strict numerical analysis would show that I would lose many more experience points from a familiar dying than I would by scribing a replacement scroll. Blackwing: Let's just put, "Not quitting while you're ahead," on that list of flaws for you to work on. D&D Context * Bugsby's Cat-Retrieving Hand is, of course, not a canonical D&D spell. However it plays on the several "hand" spells named for the Archmage Bigby. Bigby was a character played by D&D creator Gary Gygax. Originally created by Bob Kuntz as an NPC henchmen for Gygax's Mordenkainen, Bigby became a PC in his own right and a member of Gygax's Circle of Eight. Due to copyright constraints, the name cannot be used in the SRD and in this comic it is parodied variously as "Bugsby" or "Bixby". * Scribing a scroll of Locate Creature costs 28XP (base cost / 25). Replacing a familiar costs the wizard 200 XP/level. In Vaarsuvius' case this would be 3,200 XP, considerably more than the scroll cost. Trivia * Blackwing saying "I'm a wizard, Harry!" is a reference to Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, where Hagrid first revealed to Harry that he was a wizard by telling him "Yer a wizard, Harry!" * Bugsby's Cat-Retrieving Hand was last seen in use in comic #781, "Companions". * This is the last appearance of the rats, the Mischief of Hel. A Mischief is the collective noun for a group of rats. They first appeared in #1014, "Aw, Rats!" External Links * 1021}} View the comic * 477040}} View the discussion thread Category:Uses Bugsby's Cat-Retrieving Hand Category:Uses Various Hand Spells Category:Godsmoot